


Twelve Constellations

by BrightEyed_Bleary



Series: Aureoled Lives [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: AU - Slightly Magical, F/M, M/M, My First Fanfic, Percy is a bad dancer, Saving the World, Secret Missions, Spies, Zodiac signs - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-21
Updated: 2017-06-12
Packaged: 2018-11-03 08:54:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10963878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrightEyed_Bleary/pseuds/BrightEyed_Bleary
Summary: Annabeth Chase was born anxious. She popped out three months too early, and even though she survived, her mother decided that she didn’t want to be burdened by that troublesome child who barely made it to life.Abandoned at a young age, Annabeth surely wouldn’t make it. However, her first stroke of lucked arrived in the form of a man who was wandering through the forest in search of a way to fill his empty heart.She grew up bold. She exceled in fighting and weapon use, and yet she was an amazing strategist and brilliant beyond words. She made friends and enemies, and she learned what it meant to love.But now, a unique opportunity arises, and what else can she do but accept it. She and a team of people race against the clock, the government, and a darker force that hides in the shadows to obtain the ultimate source of power and save the human race.





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> /Notes: Wow, that go really cliched. Oh, well. Welcome! I don’t know where this is going, or what brought this on, (honestly, I think it was reading so many other fan fictions and then thinking, “hey, I want to do that, because these ones are so cool!”) So, here I am.  
> I promise we’re almost there, this intro seems so long!! and you can definitely skip this chapter and get on to the story on the next page, but I just wanted to include a run-down of the characters and some of the basic terminology. I will update this as the story goes on, but it just makes the story flow better if I don’t include a lot of the terms in the actual story.  
> I tried to fashion most of the characters and relationships off the books in the sense of who ends up with who, but I make no promises and Annabeth is the main character, duh.  
> However, that being said, ignore familial relations and ages because I made some of the characters adults that were teenagers, and obviously, Jason and Annabeth are not adoptive siblings.  
> Also, the main objective is to find the Zodiac stones (you’ll find out eventually) and I’ll also include those and their powers here too.  
> P.S. I don’t own the characters, just the plot. These beautiful people belong to Mr. Rick Riordan, I sincerely thank him for my childhood, blah, blah, blah, yada, yada… Yeah!

Character Synopsis:  
Annabeth Chase:  
Our main character. Bright minded and fierce, she knows what she wants and she does it with every ounce of her being. Is constantly looking for a challenge, and now has the hardest one of her life.  
Jason Grace:  
Annabeth’s adoptive brother who taught her everything she knows about having fun and running missions. A good operative, but no quite fast enough to keep up with Annabeth in the mentality of on the spot thinking.  
Piper McLean:  
Full of spirit, she teachers everyone the value of teamwork and yet, when she wants something she gets it no matter what. Known for being able to talk people into almost anything.  
Zane Grace (Zeus):  
Annabeth’s adoptive father who cared for her and raised her as one of his own. This man will protect everyone he cares about no matter what the costs are and how much he has to risk for himself.  
Percy Jackson:  
Tall, dark, and handsome might describe this one, but he is the most difficult person that anyone has ever met. Constantly brooding so that everyone is afraid of him, but if you get on his good side, you’re set for life.  
Holly Jackson (OC):  
Kind of an OC as I mean for her to be Percy’s younger sibling, but she is only two years younger than him. This little girl can crack any code while still being fun and the only person in the world that reign in her brother’s temper.  
Will Solace:  
The only person on the team who makes sure that everyone is safe on each mission and is actually taking care of themselves as they work around the clock to save the world.  
Hazel Levesque:  
This woman is the organizer. She holds the team together when all hope seems lost even though she seems to be lost herself, always looking for something, or someone, she seems to have lost.  
Frank Zhang:  
A sweetheart in every sense of the word. Easily flustered, but a brilliant mind and a surprisingly amazing fighter. He is known for his extensive bank of facts and seemingly photographic memory.  
Leo Valdez:  
This kid has a sparkle in his eye that makes everyone worried about being in his presence, but he can get anyone out of a bad situation, though he methods aren’t exactly sane. A high riding adrenaline junkie who is just this side of crazy.  
Luke Castellan:  
A mysterious man who holds a high rank in the government that rules this even more mysterious world. He is the one who creates and oversees the mission, but are his motives more than they seem?  
Nico DiAngelo:  
A double agent from the start, DiAngelo has a hidden agenda against his own guardian to avenge his father and his sister. He won’t come in until later in the story, or maybe even series because this is looking really long.  
Grover Underwood:  
I am not positive who I want Grover to be yet, but I definitely want him in the story. Leave a comment about how I should incorporate him and I’ll see if I can work something out.  
Important Terms:  
Ziggurat: An ancient style pyramid or temple used here to describe the buildings that act as sanctuaries for the characters, and other similar people.  
Aureole: A term here used to describe the groups that all of the characters exist in, also could be used to describe the race of slightly magical beings.  
Portals: I just want to kind of explain how the work: A portal can be formed from any of the Portal Rooms (PRs) and also by remote Portal Creators (PCs) which are only given to high ranking officials. For younger operatives, like most of the characters, they have a supervisor back in their assigned PR to watch over them and take care of any portals that need to be made.  
Coms and Touchpads: Just another thing I want to explain. The coms and touchpads are a form of communication loosely based off of “Across the Universe” from Beth Revis, (all rights go to her). They work across a network and are surgically attached to each person, fusing biology with technology. 

 

Zodiac Stones:  
Taurus: An Earth Stone. Known as a controller of material goods. The holder of the stone can ‘convince’ people to give them whatever they desire. Control of the Stone comes with the desire to have everything. Fail safe is to lock the holder up for 24 without possessions. If they survive, the greed will break. Take the stone immediately.

Gemini: An Air Stone. Known as the controller of speech. The controller of the stone will force all in its presence to speak the truth whether they would otherwise do so or not, making it dangerous in negotiations, yet the wearer can still lie. Control of the Stone will make the wearer paranoid that everyone is a liar.Fail safe is to tell a truth that will break them, the stone will lose its effect. Take the Stone immediately.


	2. Under the Radar - Taurus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! The story for reals now!! I apologize ahead of time for any mistakes that may have been made. I am pretty good at catching them but I am not perfect. The story is mostly from Annabeth’s POV, but chapters without a name in the title are from her POV and the rest of the POVs will be labeled in the chapter title.  
> *Usual stuff: I don’t own the character (those rights go to Rick Riordan) I only own the plot and any OCs. :p

“Come on Jason,” I whispered to my brother beside me, “are you almost ready?” I once again peeked over the edge of the wall at the two men in the alley. The taller one was wearing a black fedora and carrying a large duffel bag. No need to guess what was in there. It just had that “money inside” look to it.  
The other shorter, pudgier one held only a small leather drawstring bag. That was the target. Yet, I had no idea what it was. The short one spoke again before pulling out a hanker chief and wiping his forehead. I could practically see the sweat from my perch, it was dripping off him in rivers.  
“Yeah, yeah Annabeth,” he whispered back, while securing the hooks over the edge of the roof and tossing the ropes over the edge of the wall, “just give me a sec. Unless you want to plummet to your death.”  
I huffed, but whispered back, “Alright Jason, just hurry.”  
“Mhmm,” Jason said, “got it. Ready Pipes?” He was referring to Piper McLean on the other end of our coms. She was his recently gained girlfriend who was also in charge of transportation, that is the portals.  
“Good to go,” Piper replied, her voice crackling through our coms, “be safe.”  
“You got it,” Jason replied, “ready Annabeth?” I only nodded.  
Together, we each grabbed one of the ropes and leapt over the wall. We swung down until we hit the ground, our boots slamming against the floor. Both men whipped around to face us. For a second, we stared at each other. Then Jason and I sprang into action. He tackled the taller one the ground and I dove for the shorter one. He immediately yelped and dropped the bag. I scooped it up and raised my hand to toss sparks in his face. He threw his hands over his face and turned to sprint off into the night. I scowled after him. What a coward.  
I returned my attention to Jason who was still wrestling with the other man. They had risen to their feet and were exchanging blows. I stepped over to them and calmly swept the man’s feet out from under him. He grunted as he hit the ground with a thud. Jason quickly stepped over him and made to knock him out, but the man was fast. He leapt to his feet and made off the alley. We quickly raced after him, keeping pace with him. He dodged through the streets quickly, and I followed based on instinct rather than vision.  
Jason was falling back, but I could hear him speaking to Piper rapidly, running off directions. Soon he fell out of peripheral vision, but I pushed on. We raced through a couple more streets, and the strain was catching up to me. Just as my vision started blurring, a bright green light opened before us like a beacon of hope. The man slammed his heels into the ground, but I careened into him sending us both through the portal with a scream. We toppled onto the floor as Jason came behind us. He tripped over my back, letting out a grunt before toppling over on top of me.  
“Oof,” I exclaimed as the air was crushed out of my lungs, “ouch Jason.”  
“Sorry,” he said, scrambling off of me. He quickly tackled the other man to the ground, just as he started to rise.  
“Get off me,” the man said, he had a deep, slightly raspy voice, “this is unacceptable.” Jason managed to pull a pair of cuffs out of his jacket and lock them around the man’s wrists.  
“What’s unacceptable is you dealing in stolen, rare and precious items,” Jason said, hauling the man up. The man was now red faced and mad. He reacted lightning fast, knocking Jason in the shins and wrenching out of his grip. He made a dash for the door, but just then it flew open and there was Piper in all her glory. She was a truly beautiful woman. She was tall with dark chestnut hair and tanned native skin. Her eyes shone green, and they were burning with warning. The man skidded to a stop, his shoes couldn’t have any sole left. She hauled at a loaded crossbow up and leveled it at his chest.  
“I wouldn’t take another step,” she warned, “and even if you make it past me, do you really want to take your chances handcuffed in a fully armed, highly trained ziggurat?”  
“I suggest you don’t,” Jason said, heavily as he had just recovered from the running and the kick to the shin. The man didn’t move.  
“Good,” Piper said, “now why don’t we sit down.” She moved the crossbow slightly to indicate the table in the Portal Room. So, named because all portals headed to this ziggurat were directed to one of the 30 similar rooms. The man slowly backed up still wary of Piper’s crossbow and sat down in one of the chairs.

I hauled myself up from the floor after recovering from having my lungs crushed, and walked off to a corner to contact my dad.   
Zane Grace was Jason’s biological dad and the man who took me in when I arrived here and the one who had sent me and Jason on the mission. I pulled back my sleeve to reveal my touchpad. The connected com in my ear made small noises to each of the number, then a soft humming noise as the call went through.  
“Annabeth?” my dad’s voice came through my com clear as day, “is that you?” I rolled my eyes. The coms always announced who the call was from before the call was connected, but dad always found the need to be sure that it was me.  
“Yeah, dad,” I replied, “it’s me.”  
“How did it go?” he asked. I could hear footsteps so I guessed he was headed our way.   
“PR 18,” I started so he knew where he was going, “it went okay.”  
“Just okay,” he interrupted before I could finish.  
“Yeah,” I said, scratching the back of my neck, “we got the package, but we also got a person. One of the men in the negotiation made a break for it. We made chase, but had to force him through the portal.” His footsteps sped up.  
“I’m almost there,” he said hurriedly, “don’t say anything to him.” The com went dead after that. I turned around and headed back to Jason and Piper. They were sitting across the man at the table. Their hands joined, Piper’s crossbow still pointed at the man. I opened my mouth to repeat dad’s warning, but before I could get a word out he burst through the doors.   
Zane was a man you didn’t want to mess with. At least that’s how he looked. He was easily 6 feet tall by eye, 6 feet 5 inches by ruler, and had a broad set frame that was all muscle. He had a hard-set face and eyes that could melt from bliss to apathy to brutal in a heartbeat. His crisp blue eyes and blond hair often made him appear unintelligent, but anyone who spoke one word to him knew he held more knowledge in his head than everyone in the room.  
On the inside though, he was kind, caring and patient. He had taught me everything that I knew and was always willing to teach me more. I would never think to betray him and not because there would be hell to pay, but because I would feel so guilty that it would call hell myself to make me pay.   
“Don’t say anything!” he shouted. I clamped my mouth shut so hard it made a clacking sound. All heads jerked to him as he also commanded a sort of power that made everyone focus on him.   
“Who are you?” the man said, “Are you the one in charge of the outrageous evening?”   
“I think the real question here is who are you?” Dad continued, “And why were you dealing with this kind of illegal thing?”  
“Maybe because I am working for the same government that you are,” he said rising to his feet. We all tensed. My dad had not told me much about this mission, but he made one thing clear to all of us. The council did not know about this, and they would not know about it.   
“Un cuff him Jason,” dad said.  
“Dad,” Jason warned.  
“Just do it Jason,” dad said, “let’s see if he’s telling the truth.” Jason turned and pulled the key from his pocket. We were all tense as he unlocked the cuffs. The man rubbed his wrists. At that point, the man reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a badge. There it was. The Aureole seal. A bronze circle with twelve smaller circles within it. They connected in the middle with twelve lines. Across the center was an embossed number: 011. In the Aureole, you were ranked by your badge number and clearly the smaller the number the higher the rank. We had just abducted one of the most powerful operatives in the world. The other ten numbers, and 000, belonged to the ten council members and the head councilman.   
“Oh shit,” Jason said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I hope you enjoyed. Comment and kudos always and forever loved!! :p See you guys next week... hopefully.


	3. Questions and Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm bored. I am posting early because I have so much written and the way this is going, it's gonna be like two years before I get it all done. I am going to have to find out a way to break this up and split it to multiple fictions. Dunno, anyways, in this chapter you get to meet most of the other team members, and I am super excited. Hopefully, I do you proud. This sections is a little short, but I wanted to save Percy for his own chapter!!

The next morning, I woke up to the door banging open, “Wake up Annabeth,” Jason shouted. I groaned and rolled over. “Don’t you go back to sleep, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” he continued ripping the covers off my bed.   
“Ugh,” I said, burrowing deeper into my pillow, “can’t you go wake up Piper first.”  
“I’m already up sunshine,” Piper’s voice penetrated my ears, “we’re just waiting on you.” I groaned again.  
“Okay, okay,” I said, “I’m getting up.” I rushed through my morning routine, and 15 minutes later the three of us were strolling down the hallway towards the mess where we would have some breakfast and attempt to capture our first victim, I mean ask our first team member.   
“Hey guys,” a new voice said. That was fast. The new voice belonged Leo. He came out of the boys’ dorm and joined us towards the mess. Leo was the sneaky boy that you met in shop class. He had curly brown hair, a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. He was Latino and his tanned skin made his teeth look extra bright. He was dressed normally in an oil stained white shirt and brown pants. His suspenders were half on and his shoes untied. He was shorter than the rest of us, not by a lot, but enough for it to be noticeable.   
“Hey Leo,” I greeted, “I have a proposition for you.”  
“Yeah?” he asked, “What kind of proposition?”   
“The kind that allows you to work with all the weapons you want,” Jason said as Leo’s eyes lit up, “but there are a few complications.”  
“Don’t care,” Leo said, “I’m in.” We all laughed. Leo was honestly one of the most laid back, go with the flow kind of person.   
“Great,” I said, “meet us in PR 18 come Monday at 11:30.”  
“Cool,” he said, “so I have the rest of the weekend to prepare.” He started rubbing his hands together maniacally, and we all had to laugh again.   
By that time, we had reached the mess. Piper pecked Jason on the check before running off to find a table. The rest of us got in line. We each grabbed a plate and Jason grabbed two. As we worked through the line, Leo asks relentless questions about what’s happening. Just as relentlessly, we told him that we can’t tell him anything until we get to the rendezvous point on Monday.   
“You guys are no fun,” Leo complained as we headed towards the table that Piper was warding people away from.   
“It’s not supposed to be fun,” Jason stressed, “it’s supposed to be a secret.”  
“Ugh,” Leo said, sitting down, “fine.”  
“Good you guys are here,” Piper said taking her tray from Jason, “because I found our next victim, I mean, member.” We all turned to where she was pointing and saw Frank finishing his tray and searching for a spot to sit. It wasn’t that Frank wasn’t interesting or fun, it was just that people like to enjoy him in small doses.   
“I got it,” Leo said. He then proceeded to wave his arms around like a manic, “Frank! Over here!” Needless to say, we got his attention, but also the attention of the entire mess.   
“Leo,” I whispered, “great going.”  
“Thanks,” he said, slumping back down in his chair. I rolled my eyes. By that time, Frank had reached our table.   
“Uh,” he said, “hey.” He was balancing his tray looking uncomfortable. Leo unceremoniously grabbed his shirt sleeve and yanked him into the seat next to him, which was pretty funny considering how much taller Frank was. Frank yelped before shifting down into his seat and not subtly away from Leo.   
“Geez Leo,” Jason complained, “you’re gonna scare him away before we even manage to get a word across.”  
“He likes it,” Leo complained, bumping Frank on the shoulder. The boy only scowled and shifted further away from Leo. Honestly, Leo looked hurt. There weren’t many people in the world who disliked Leo since he was so easy going and carefree, but Frank had always had a sore spot for him.   
I examined the boy warily. Did we really want to drag him into this? Frank was a year younger than us so he was still in his training years. He didn’t really look like your typical book worm. He didn’t wear glasses and was above average height and had nice lean muscles. He was of Asian descent, but only half since his mom was from somewhere called Canada. He was really nice and absolutely hilarious. He was often considered pretty serious though. I guess that was one of the reasons that he didn’t like Leo that much. Frank saw the rules as things that were meant to be broken only under extraneous conditions, while Leo saw rules as things meant to be broken on a daily basis.   
“Anyways,” I said snapping out of my reverie, “Frank, we were wondering if you wanted to help us out.”  
“With what?” he asked, cutting into his grapefruit.   
“A project that we can’t really tell you much about here,” I replied, “but before you can learn anything else, we have to know that you won’t tell anyone about it.”  
He eyed his grapefruit warily as if he was too afraid to look at anything else, until he finally asked, “Why me?”   
“Because you’re super cool,” Leo put in before anyone could respond. He grinned at Frank, but Frank just scowled at him. Leo’s smile fell from his face and he regarded his pancakes with great scrutiny.   
“No offense Frank,” Jason said wincing, “but we really access to the Restricted Section in the archives.”  
“Oh,” Frank said, his shoulders drooping slightly, “I don’t know.”  
“Jason!” Piper chastised, “Frank that’s not true. We do need access to the Restricted area, but no one here can remember things like you, and this job will require a strong memory because I can promise that these knuckleheads won’t be able to keep the plan straight.” We all made claims of protest, but Frank flushed slightly.   
“I’ll think about it,” he mumbled, but it was clear that he would help us. I smiled greatly as Piper, she returned the smile. Leo viciously stabbed his pancakes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY! I hope I did you proud in the characters. This was originally an original work so I had to work out a lot of the kinks in order to fix it to the characters, it was pretty hard without rewriting the whole thing. I think Hazel is the one that will need the most work, she seems a little too bubbly for me from what I read in the books, but let me know what you guys think in the comments!!


	4. Questions and Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!! I'm back. I know that I said I would be posting once a week, but I keep writing and looking at how many chapters there are, it would take like years to post them all and I am not up for that. So, I am thinking that I will be posting more often than that, probably two or three times a week depending on how fast I write.   
> This chapter focuses mostly on the recruitment of the team. I think it's good, but let me know what you guys think! I want to hear from you!!  
> Anyways, let's go.

The next morning, I woke up to the door banging open, “Wake up Annabeth,” Jason shouted. I groaned and rolled over. “Don’t you go back to sleep, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” he continued ripping the covers off my bed.   
“Ugh,” I said, burrowing deeper into my pillow, “can’t you go wake up Piper first.”  
“I’m already up sunshine,” Piper’s voice penetrated my ears, “we’re just waiting on you.” I groaned again.  
“Okay, okay,” I said, “I’m getting up.” I rushed through my morning routine, and 15 minutes later the three of us were strolling down the hallway towards the mess where we would have some breakfast and attempt to capture our first victim, I mean ask our first team member.   
“Hey guys,” a new voice said. That was fast. The new voice belonged Leo. He came out of the boys’ dorm and joined us towards the mess. Leo was the sneaky boy that you met in shop class. He had curly brown hair, a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. He was Latino and his tanned skin made his teeth look extra bright. He was dressed normally in an oil stained white shirt and brown pants. His suspenders were half on and his shoes untied. He was shorter than the rest of us, not by a lot, but enough for it to be noticeable.   
“Hey Leo,” I greeted, “I have a proposition for you.”  
“Yeah?” he asked, “What kind of proposition?”   
“The kind that allows you to work with all the weapons you want,” Jason said as Leo’s eyes lit up, “but there are a few complications.”  
“Don’t care,” Leo said, “I’m in.” We all laughed. Leo was honestly one of the most laid back, go with the flow kind of person.   
“Great,” I said, “meet us in PR 18 come Monday at 11:30.”  
“Cool,” he said, “so I have the rest of the weekend to prepare.” He started rubbing his hands together maniacally, and we all had to laugh again.   
By that time, we had reached the mess. Piper pecked Jason on the check before running off to find a table. The rest of us got in line. We each grabbed a plate and Jason grabbed two. As we worked through the line, Leo asks relentless questions about what’s happening. Just as relentlessly, we told him that we can’t tell him anything until we get to the rendezvous point on Monday.   
“You guys are no fun,” Leo complained as we headed towards the table that Piper was warding people away from.   
“It’s not supposed to be fun,” Jason stressed, “it’s supposed to be a secret.”  
“Ugh,” Leo said, sitting down, “fine.”  
“Good you guys are here,” Piper said taking her tray from Jason, “because I found our next victim, I mean, member.” We all turned to where she was pointing and saw Frank finishing his tray and searching for a spot to sit. It wasn’t that Frank wasn’t interesting or fun, it was just that people like to enjoy him in small doses.   
“I got it,” Leo said. He then proceeded to wave his arms around like a manic, “Frank! Over here!” Needless to say, we got his attention, but also the attention of the entire mess.   
“Leo,” I whispered, “great going.”  
“Thanks,” he said, slumping back down in his chair. I rolled my eyes. By that time, Frank had reached our table.   
“Uh,” he said, “hey.” He was balancing his tray looking uncomfortable. Leo unceremoniously grabbed his shirt sleeve and yanked him into the seat next to him, which was pretty funny considering how much taller Frank was. Frank yelped before shifting down into his seat and not subtly away from Leo.   
“Geez Leo,” Jason complained, “you’re gonna scare him away before we even manage to get a word across.”  
“He likes it,” Leo complained, bumping Frank on the shoulder. The boy only scowled and shifted further away from Leo. Honestly, Leo looked hurt. There weren’t many people in the world who disliked Leo since he was so easy going and carefree, but Frank had always had a sore spot for him.   
I examined the boy warily. Did we really want to drag him into this? Frank was a year younger than us so he was still in his training years. He didn’t really look like your typical book worm. He didn’t wear glasses and was above average height and had nice lean muscles. He was of Asian descent, but only half since his mom was from somewhere called Canada. He was really nice and absolutely hilarious. He was often considered pretty serious though. I guess that was one of the reasons that he didn’t like Leo that much. Frank saw the rules as things that were meant to be broken only under extraneous conditions, while Leo saw rules as things meant to be broken on a daily basis.   
“Anyways,” I said snapping out of my reverie, “Frank, we were wondering if you wanted to help us out.”  
“With what?” he asked, cutting into his grapefruit.   
“A project that we can’t really tell you much about here,” I replied, “but before you can learn anything else, we have to know that you won’t tell anyone about it.”  
He eyed his grapefruit warily as if he was too afraid to look at anything else, until he finally asked, “Why me?”   
“Because you’re super cool,” Leo put in before anyone could respond. He grinned at Frank, but Frank just scowled at him. Leo’s smile fell from his face and he regarded his pancakes with great scrutiny.   
“No offense Frank,” Jason said wincing, “but we really access to the Restricted Section in the archives.”  
“Oh,” Frank said, his shoulders drooping slightly, “I don’t know.”  
“Jason!” Piper chastised, “Frank that’s not true. We do need access to the Restricted area, but no one here can remember things like you, and this job will require a strong memory because I can promise that these knuckleheads won’t be able to keep the plan straight.” We all made claims of protest, but Frank flushed slightly.   
“I’ll think about it,” he mumbled, but it was clear that he would help us. I smiled greatly as Piper, she returned the smile. Leo viciously stabbed his pancakes.  
We finished breakfast pretty quickly after that making sure that everyone knew where to meet come Monday. We all left the mess together, but split up outside the doors. Frank headed for the archives to do some organizing, and Leo wandered towards the gym with a mumble about needing to hit something. Piper, Jason, and I headed towards the main hall hoping to run into dad and let him know what was happening.   
“Hazel!” Piper abruptly shouted out. We looked down the hall to where Hazel was. She turned her brunette head towards us and her honey gold eyes lit up when she saw Piper.   
“Hey Piper!” she shouted.  
“Can we talk for a minute?” Piper shouted back.   
“Gotta head out for a mission,” Hazel replied, “maybe later?”  
“I’m headed out too,” Piper said, and she was, “I’ll come with you.”  
“Okay,” Hazel said, and stopped walking. Piper kissed Jason briefly and then ran off towards Hazel leaving Jason and I alone in the hall. We continued towards dad’s office chatting quietly. We passed the courtyard that was often used for training, which it currently was. Of course, Percy Jackson was swinging a bo staff around at invisible enemies. Grunting with every swing.   
I tucked my head down and stopped talking so that he wouldn’t see us, or at least Jason wouldn’t see him. No such luck. Jason stopped at that moment.   
“Annabeth,” he said as I turned to face him, “you know you can’t avoid this right.”  
“Sure, I can,” I responded, “I can wait until Piper comes back and then let her convince him.”  
“No,” Jason stated, “he’s supposed to be your partner. If you don’t ask him then no one will and you’ll go it alone or be stuck with me.” I scrunched my nose. I truly loved my brother, but Piper had been right, in some ways he just couldn’t keep up with me.   
“Fine,” I relented, “I’ll ask him.”  
“Good,” Jason said, “I’ll go find dad and fill him in, then I have to run a field op, so make sure you find Holly too. Might have to get Percy’s permission though.”  
“Fine,” I said, “good luck on you op.”  
“Good luck on yours,” he responded. I rolled my eyes as he punched me lightly on the shoulder in goodbye. He headed off down the hall and I turned towards the courtyard.   
“Hey Percy,” I said cautiously, wandering into the courtyard. He stopped swinging the bo staff and looked towards me.   
“Oh,” he said relaxing, “hey Annabeth.”  
“So,” I said casually, “what are you up to?”  
“Training,” he replied, raising an eyebrow, “can I help you?”  
“Yes,” I winced, I sounded desperate, “I mean maybe.”  
“With what?” he asked heading over to one of the benches that littered the courtyard. I followed him.  
“Well,” I started, “see, I have this project that just came up and I, well I was just, I was just wondering, if maybe you, well if maybe you just wanted to-”  
“Just spit it out Annabeth,” he snapped. My shoulders fell, great.   
“If you would be willing to help me,” I said.   
“Oh,” he said pulling on a leather jacket, “what exactly would we be doing.”   
“Yeah,” I winced, “I can’t really tell you anything else until you agree to help me.” He swung his bag over his shoulder, and blew out a long breath. He turned towards me and scrutinized me for a minute. I squirmed under his gaze.   
“Is there anything else?” he asked finally. I frowned, then remembered Holly.   
“Yeah,” I said, “I need you to bring Holly too.”   
“I’m out,” he said immediately, “if it’s so bad that you can’t tell me about it now, I definitely don’t want her involved.”  
“What?” I exclaimed, “Shouldn’t that be here choice?”  
“You asked me to bring her, and I’m saying no,” he said with finality, before heading out of the courtyard.  
“Come on Percy,” I protested following him, “I promise that she will just be behind the scenes. She won’t see a second of combat.”  
“No,” he said again, speeding up. I jogged beside him.  
“Can’t you at least ask her, or let me ask her,” I begged again, “we’re desperate.”  
“We?” he said, “You seem to have left something else out.”  
“Okay,” I said, “there will be other people, but that should just convince you to ask her more. There will be other people to protect her while you’re not there.” By that time, we had reached the training grounds. Percy stopped by one of the pillars and I stopped beside him. I glanced around and saw trainees spilling out of the ornate doors a few feet away. They were all Holly’s age. An idea sparked my mind. I grin split across my face and turned into the crowd.  
“Annabeth!” Percy snapped, “Damnit.” I could feel him following me, but I wasn’t hindered by a gym bag. I darted through the crowd scanning faces, then I saw her.   
“Holly!” I shouted, running for the girl. I felt Percy’s hand brush the back of my jacket, but I tugged away. I finally caught her and she barely got a word out before I started talking, “I need your help with a mission Holly. You are an amazing tech and we need you. If you’re in then meet us at 11:30 in P-” I got cut off as a hand flew over my mouth.   
“Percy!” Holly exclaimed, “She was talking,”  
“Whatever,” Percy said, as I clawed at his hand, “come on Annabeth, I’ll see you at home Holly.” Then I did something irrational and childish. I squeezed my eyes shut and licked Percy’s hand. His hand immediately shot off.   
“PR 18” I said to Holly, “11:30, Monday.”   
“Gross!” Percy exclaimed at practically the same moment, he reached over and swiped his hand over my coat sleeve. I laughed at him and darted off to find Jason.  
“See you guys Monday!” I shouted over my shoulder.   
“Bye Annabeth,” I heard Holly call back.   
I headed for the gym for some training while I waited for Jason to get back. Leo was still there, so we sparred for a while. He tried to coax more information out of me, but all I told him was who was going to be there. I asked him about Frank and he just brushed it off as nothing, but I could tell he was unhappy about it. He teased me about Percy, and I pretended to gag. It was nice.   
Around five, a few hours later, I headed back to my room, and lounged around for a while on my bed messing on my phone and watching tv on my computer. At about six Jason came home and knocked on my door.   
“Hey Annabeth,” he said after I invited him in, “how did it go with Percy.”  
“Eh,” I said pausing the show I was watching, “I kind of convinced him, then he said no when I asked him to bring Holly, then I asked Holly and she said okay, then Percy looked mad, so yeah.”  
“Wow,” Jason said, “I hope they’ll be there.”  
“Me too,” I responded, “what are we gonna do for the rest of the weekend?”   
“Just hang I guess,” Jason said, “try to relax a little bit before we have to work 24/7.”  
“Sounds good,” I said, settling back down.  
“Scoot over,” Jason said, shoving me to one side. He crawled into bed next to me and we spent the rest of the night watching bad tv.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay!! I hope that you guys liked the characters, I think that they were pretty good and hopeful I can develop them a little more into what they were originally in the books. We'll see. Comment and leave kudos please!! I will see ya in a few days!!


	5. Mission Control

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4. Still going steady, Yay!! This chapter is pretty good. It’s them finally heading to the Gorge and putting a name to some faces. I really feel like after you read this chapter the rest of the story will be a bit like Romeo and Juliet. i.e. you already know what’s going to happen, but you have to watch as all the characters suffer. IM SORRY! If you don’t see it, then even better because then I will still have some mystery. I am not even going to give you a hint, so… Enjoy.

By the time Monday morning came around, I was antsy. We hadn’t heard much from the rest of the team all weekend, and that didn’t necessarily worry me, but it did mean that maybe they had changed their minds. I was worried that maybe we would have to show up empty handed and then what would we do.   
I went through the morning with a turning stomach and barely managed to choke down breakfast. By 11:15, dad, Jason, Piper, and I were strolling down the hall towards PR 18. When we reached the room, there was no one there yet, but a couple of minutes later Hazel walked in. 

“Oh, thank Gods,” she said, “I was worried I had the wrong room.” She and Piper began chatting and Piper started setting up the portal to The Gorge. 

The next people to arrive were Leo and Frank, surprisingly they walked in together. Leo was talking about something adamantly and waving his arms while Frank was trying to read something on his tablet. Clearly it wasn’t working because I could see the smile tugging at his lips. 

“Hey guys,” I greeted, “how are you?”

“Good,” Leo replied, “I was just telling Frank about the Zodiac stones.”

“Ironic,” Jason said, attempting to be subtle, but Frank caught on.

“What was that?” he asked closing his tablet. 

“Nothing,” I put in briefly, “nothing at all Jason.” Jason winced but didn’t say anything. 

“We on a mission for something regarding the Zodiac stones?” Frank asked looking overly excited. 

“Nope,” Jason said before I could get a word edgewise. 

“We’re looking for the zodiac stones?” Frank was practically glowing at that moment. 

“Nice going Jason,” I said. He winced. 

“Let’s just wait for everyone else to get here before we say anything else.” I said, “Piper, did you find the location?”

“Yep,” she replied as the portal swirled to life, “didn’t think that was a real place, but here it is.”

“Great,” I said, “we just have to wait for dad and the Jacksons.” Everyone nodded briefly. Dad came in about five minutes later.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said, “got caught up at the office. There was an early morning meeting.” I glanced at the clock hanging above the door: 11:27. 

“We can’t wait forever Annabeth,” Jason said.

“They still have a couple minutes,” I replied, but I could feel the sweat gathering on the back of my neck. At precisely 11:29, I heard footsteps pounding down the hall. 

“Nice try Perce,” I heard Holly shout, “but if you’re going then so am I.”

“You are not,” Percy shouted back, “now get back here.” Holly burst into the room just after that with Percy on her heels. 

“Can you believe that he thought he could sneak past me?” Holly said grinning at us, “I heard him leaving his room about half an hour ago without telling me we were even gonna go. Good thing I packed last night.” Percy scowled, but it was clear that Holly wasn’t going anywhere, we had all already seen her. 

“Good,” dad said, “everyone looks accounted for, so let’s not waste any time.”

“Okay,” I said, “dad’s right, we should get going.” I ushered everyone towards the portal. Dad went through first to be sure all was well, then Frank skipped through. Leo chuckled and made a quick dash through. Piper and Hazel went next, followed then by Jason. Holly shrugged and went through next. Then, it was just me and Percy. 

“Ladies first,” he said gruffly, gesturing to the portal. I scowled at him. 

“Fine,” I said, “but you better be right behind me.”

“I tried to sneak out of the house to be here,” he said rolling his eyes, “I think that I’ll go through.” I eyed him warily, but walked through the portal. A moment later I took in my first look of The Gorge. It was nothing like I expected. 

I took a couple steps forward and took in the giant forest that surrounded me. It was breathtaking. A hidden valley within a large forest that was filled to the brim with evergreen trees. There were birds flying above and the sun was bright through the clear blue sky. A moment later, Percy crashed through the portal and tumbled into me effectively ruining the moment. 

“Oof,” I said, crashing into the ground. I landed on my stomach and he fell heavily on top of me his duffel slamming me in the back of the head. 

“Ouch!” he exclaimed, as he torso slammed down on my elbow. I heard laughs from the others. I managed to scowl at them as I pushed myself up and Percy rolled off. I rose to my feet and brushed my pants off. 

I took a quick glance around and noticed a large white dome that I suppose we were supposed to be headed to. I straightened my jacket and joined the other with Percy behind me. 

We walked towards the dome and when we arrived, a door slid open before us. We all visibly tensed, and when 011 appeared at the doorway, only four of us relaxed. 

“Good you made it okay,” he said, opening the door wider. He gestured us in and we stepped in, most of us still wary of the man. The inside of the dome was just what you expected. Just a large open space. There was a round table in the middle and movable boards set around the room. Twelve to be precise. 

Each was labeled with one of the twelve zodiac stones and a picture of the stone. I scanned the pictures: Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn were a deep mix of earth tones. Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius swirled blues and greens. Scorpio, Cancer, and Pisces were misty silvers and grays. Finally, Aries, Sagittarius, and Leo were blazing reds and yellows. 

“Just trying to organize it all a little,” 011 said noticing me staring. I nodded briefly. He suggested that we sit down so we could start briefing. We all wandered to the table and took a seat. I ended up with Jason on my left and Percy on my right.

“Before we start briefing the mission,” dad began, “I am sure that you want to know what exactly is going on here.”

“That would preferable,” Frank said.

“Okay,” 011 said, “my name is Luke Castellan and I am an Aureole agent number 011.” Leo choked, but I relaxed happy to finally have a name to the number.

“You’re 011!” Leo exclaimed.

“Yes,” Luke said calmly. 

“Wow,” Leo said, glee spreading across his face, “that’s so cool!”

“Yeah,” he responded, “anyways. I have become concerned that our esteemed council has fallen under the influence of power. They seem determined to find these stones and take them.”

“Wait,” Percy interrupted, “are you seriously suggesting that the Aureole is dirty or something?”

“Or something,” he replied, “look the details aren’t important right now. All you need to know is that we need to find the stones before anyone else.” Percy slummed back, but didn’t say anything else. 

“So where do we start?” Hazel asked. She pulled out a notebook and pen from her bag. 

“Well,” Luke began, “this is the first stone that has already been acquired despite the unconventional, and unplanned for methods.”

“What do you mean?” Frank asked, lifting his head from some of the papers he had been shuffling through.

“I was just making a purchase for the stone,” Luke said, looking pointedly at me, “when Annabeth here decided to snatch it before I could my hands on it.”

“So how did you end up here?” Hazel asked.

“What do you mean?” Luke asked.

“Just that if Annabeth already had the stone, why did she chase after you?” she asked.

“I gave chase because I didn’t know what he knew,” I responded, “and if he had seen us, I didn’t want to risk him finding us under different circumstances.” Hazel nodded as if this was a legitimate answer.

“Anyways,” he headed to the board labeled Taurus and pointed to it, “this is the stone that we now have in our possession. It is the Taurus, one of the three earth stones.”

“Right,” Frank put in, “that stone is used for earthly things in general, but the Taurus itself is known to control material greed. He who owns it can use it to convince people to give him any item that he asks for.” 

“Good,” Luke said, looking surprised, “how much do you know about the stones?”

“Quite a bit,” Frank admitted, “I have always been interested in them, and am able to get more information through the Aureole Archives.” Luke’s eyes sparkled at this comment. 

“Yes,” Percy exclaimed, “look at you. Being all ahead of the game.” He grinned broadly and raised his hand to Frank for a high-five. Frank hesitated, but lightly slapped Percy’s palm, then immediately looked like he regretted it. We all chuckled, but Percy looked like he had just won the lottery. 

“Oh,” Luke said, clapping his hands together, “Frank, since I really know only the basics about the stones, but don’t really know the specifics, do you think you would be willing to help us out?” he gestured to the other empty boards, “It will help speed things up later.” 

“I guess that would be cool,” he said. Frank then proceeded to rise and bring his papers with him, as well as a roll of tape. He began sticking and writing things on the boards with a marker that Luke handed him. We watched him for a minute then looked back to Luke. 

“Well,” Luke said, “while he does that I think we should make a plan for which stone we want to get next and how.”

“You should try and find the Gemini,” Frank said, heading to the Gemini board, “it’s in New York, and conveniently going on display on Thursday.” 

“Why Thursday?” I asked. 

“Thursday is the birthday of the man who gave the stone to the museum. He’s throwing a big party in his honor,” Frank said, writing Guggenheim next to the name of the stone. 

“So,” I said, “we just need invitations, right?” 

“I think that would be best,” Piper said, “unless you want to break into a gala with a hundred people.”

“No thanks,” I said, “okay, so me and Percy will go in and-”

“Woah,” Percy said, “why do I have to go with you?” 

“Because,” I said, “that’s what you’re here for. To help me on the missions.”

“Why can’t Jason go with you?” he asked, looking slightly panicked.

“He’s staying here with Piper and your sister,” I said, “why are you acting like this is such a big deal?” 

“He’s just stressed because he can’t dance,” Holly put in looking up from her laptop.

“What?” I said, “That’s what you’re worried about?!?!”


	6. Gowns and Guns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Honestly, I am starting to get worried. Life just got super busy and I am running out of time and story to post. Hopefully I will find a day where I can just sit down and just write for a few hours. We'll see. Anyways, ON WITH THE STORY!!

“That’s a completely rational fear,” he countered, “we’re at risk if we stand out in any way.”   
“We’re not going to stand out if we don’t dance,” I said, “besides, I can lead.” He didn’t look happy about it, but Percy nodded that he would do it anyways.   
“Great,” I said, “now we need a way in and a way to get the stone.”  
“Way ahead of you Annabeth,” Holly said, “check this out.” She turned her screen towards us and pointed at the screen. In fancy script was a digital invitation that read: 

Congratulations Esteemed Guest!  
This ticket grants entrance to the Guggenheim Gemini Gala to:  
Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson  
On Thursday, November 11, 2017 at 6:00 p.m.   
Dress Formal.   
“Wow!” Hazel said looking over Percy’s shoulder, “Is that legit?”  
“Not really,” Hazel said, “see this barcode?” She pointed to a spot just below the writing, “They scan this at the door and if it doesn’t match the guest list, you can’t go in. I just need to change your code to someone’s who is already on the official list, just copy paste your names in, well it’s a bit harder than it sounds, but that’s the basic idea.”  
“You can do that?” Hazel asked.  
“I hope so,” she replied, “it’s our only way in.”  
“Good luck,” I said, as she turned back to her computer.   
“So,” Piper said, looking antsy, “what are you going to wear Annabeth? I mean this is a gala, and you can’t wear legging and a leather jacket.”  
“I know,” I said rolling my eyes, “I own other clothes you know.”  
“Really,” she said, “because I’ve never seen them.” I rolled my eyes and Percy snickered.   
“Oh, shut up Percy,” I said, “like you own a suit.”  
“Of course, I do,” Percy said, his face falling into perfect seriousness, “every gentleman owns a suit.” I rolled my eyes again, and glanced around at everyone else.   
Luke was talking to Frank and pointing at different things that he was pining on the boards. Jason was talking to Leo about some kind of bomb that he was working on in his spare time, and Hazel was scribbling away at her notebook with Holly. They seemed to be forming some kind of plan while Holly typed out something that looked very complicated.   
“Well I’m just excited to help Annabeth get ready for a formal event,” Piper said practically glowing with glee.   
“Woah,” I protested, “who said that you were going to help me?”  
“I did,” she said seriously, “there’s no way that I am going to let you do your own makeup and hair.” I opened my mouth to protest, but she did have a point. I basically had one makeup style: a little concealer for any unsightly blemishes and sometimes some eyeliner. And one/two hairstyles: it was just a high pony, but sometimes is was sleek and other times it is was messy.   
“Fine,” I relented, “but I still want to look like myself, and I need to be able to fight, so no heels.” Her face fell.  
“Not even tiny ones?” honestly, Piper looked desperate at that point.  
“No,” I said forcefully, “plus, I’m almost as tall as Percy and if I wear heels then I’ll be taller than him.” Piper frowned, but she knew that I was right, so she let it go.   
“What else?” Percy asked. We pondered that for a moment before Piper came up with something.  
“You need weapons,” she stated, “obviously, but how to keep them concealed it the problem.”  
“I think they run you through a metal detector when you get there,” Holly put in as she looked up from her computer, “and you better figure it out because you’re going to the gala.”  
“You, did it?” I asked.   
“Yeppers,” she said looking excited.   
“Wow,” I said, “that’s awesome!”  
“Thanks,” she said, “I told you that you couldn’t do it without me Perce.”  
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, “I was wrong, we need you, blah, blah, blah.” We all laughed at him, but I was glad he was finally accepting the fact that she was part of the team.   
***  
The days went by quickly before the gala, not that there were many of them. We had a meeting at the Gorge every day, but more often than not, we couldn’t all make it. I think that it was starting to weigh on everyone how hard this was going to be. Normally, we had an op about three times a week, and the other four days were meant for training and preparation for the next op. We all worked our asses off, typically late into the nights, to make it to meetings. It was starting to show. Those that I did see at any point were exhausted with bags under our eyes, crumpled clothing, and yawns after every sentence.   
It was strange how fast our lives were consumed by the mission, and how quickly we were overwhelmed. But soon it was Thursday. We had somehow worked out the kinks in the plan and managed to figure out how we were going to get the stone.   
The gala started at 7:00 pm, so at 6:15 pm, Piper was just finishing wrestling me into my dress.   
“You’re crushing me,” I complained, as she slipped the zipper up another inch. My hair and makeup was already done, I was armed with a knife, that was concealed with a little magic to keep is from being detected, in a thigh sheath and the pins in my hair were dipped in poison. My flat shoes were already on, so this was the last step.   
“Almost there,” she grunted, pulling again.   
“You know,” I gasped, “if you had bought a dress in my size, we wouldn’t have this issue.”  
“But this one’s perfect,” she said, yanking again. Going shopping with Piper was a nightmare. She was great at it, but it took forever. I think I had tried on over a hundred dresses before she found the right one, and it was way too small. She had insisted that it would fit though, and it only wasn’t because we had eaten right before we came to the store, which was true.   
She had starved me all day, and now here we were. It was fitting better, but definitely not well.   
“I won’t be able to eat a thing,” I whined, as the dress constricted my shoulder blades.  
“Too bad,” Piper said, “because I got it.” The dress finally zipped up the top and I let out a breath, well, as much as I could.   
“Gods,” I said exasperated, “that was not worth it.”   
“I think it was,” she said, looking me up and down. I frowned at her and tuned to the mirror. Honestly, Piper had done a good job. The dress hugged my chest, obviously, and flowed out at my waist all the way to the bottom. The deep blue color matched the eyeshadow that she had done and brought out my eyes. The gold earrings and necklace shone, and my hair cascaded in curls down my back and over my shoulders.   
“What do you think?” Piper asked, wiggling her eyebrows.   
“I don’t think you can do that as well as you think you can,” I replied, pointing at her forehead, “they kind of just move in the same direction at the same time.”  
“Not that,” she said giggling and smacking my hand down, “of your look.”  
“Oh,” I said, feigning surprise, “I think I’ll pass as a gala goer.”  
“Whatever,” Piper said, “it’s not like I wasted hours doing this.” She pouted.  
“I’m sorry Pipes,” I said, hugging her, “I appreciate it, but this just isn’t something I do all the time, or really like to do.”  
“That’s okay Annabeth,” she said, hugging me back, “I understand. Kind of like how I would never wear the same outfit twice in one month.” I rolled my eyes.   
“Yeah just like that.” I said sarcastically.   
“Anyways,” she said, pulling away, “we should go check on the others and see if everyone is ready to go.”   
“For sure,” I said, straightening out my dress, “let’s go.”  
“Yes,” she replied, “let’s.”   
We left my room at that point and headed downstairs to where Jason was waiting to go to the PR with us where we would meet up with the others, then head to the Gorge, and then me and Percy would head out to the gala from there.   
“Hey,” I greeted Jason, who was currently stuffing his face at the kitchen table. My stomach roared in protest.   
“Oh, hey,” Jason said looking up, “you’re finally done.”  
“Jeez,” I complained, “do you have to eat in front of me?”  
“What?” Jason replied, “I’m hungry.” He was totally oblivious, and by that point I was ready to punch him in the face.   
“Let’s just go,” Piper said, “the quicker we get out of here the faster we can get the mission over with.”  
“Fine,” I grumbled, “but the moment I get home, I will stuff my face with so much candy.”   
“I’m sure you will,” Piper said, pushing me out of the door along with Jason. We headed down the halls towards the PRs, and ran into Leo along the way.   
“Hey guys,” Leo greeted, “you ready to go?”   
“Yep,” I replied, “how about you?”  
“For sure,” Leo said maniacally. We had given Leo one small job to do. He had constructed a small bomb that Percy and I would use to break the case surrounding the stone so that we could get it, and he insisted on being in control of the detonator. That, of course, required him to be close to the bomb, so we were letting him come with us to the gala, but he had to stay on the roof. He had complained, but eventually complied when dad told him to do it, or he would forcibly give me the detonator.   
We made it to the PR shortly after that where everyone else was already waiting.   
“Finally,” Percy said, “you’re here. Ready to go?”   
“Oh, thanks Percy, you look great too,” I said sarcastically crossing my arms over my chest.  
“Hey thanks,” he said, without missing a beat, “I thought I looked pretty great too.” I huffed and stomped over to the portal that Piper had brought to life. I stalked through it and Percy’s mocking laughter faded off as I headed towards the Gorge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is more the prep part, and the actual mission will be split over the next couple chapters. I think I will work on posting them closer together than one week since I’m sure it will end awkwardly, but we’ll see…
> 
> So, I know that I didn’t put the whole plan/debriefing in here, I didn’t want to write the whole thing out, but you guys will just have to figure out the plan as we go over the next chapters!!  
> Also, I know that Percy can dance *cough* the titan’s curse *cough*, but I thought it would be cute for Percy to have an irrational fear that was completely ridiculous, so there it is.   
> Comment and kudos always and forever appreciated.


	7. Gallery Showing - Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So this chapter is going to be pretty short just because I haven't had any time to write lately. I am trying hard, but for a little while it will be either shorter chapters with small breaks, or a long wait with a long chapter at the end. I really love doing this, but my college quarter is ending so studying for finals is starting. It is the last quarter though, so with summer coming, hopefully I will be able to write a lot more. Thanks for hanging in here, and ENJOY the beginning of the missions, with a few unexpected guests. :)

Percy and I stepped out of the van that we had driven through the portal onto the slightly damp ground. I lifted my skirt as we made our way down the block. Dad drove off to head to the rendezvous point. 

My heart started pounding as we climbed the steps of the Guggenheim to where there was a growing crowd and a large amount of security. We waited in line until one of the burly, suited men waved us over. My breath stalled for a minute before I felt Percy’s hand on my back. 

“Come on Annie,” he whispered, “it’ll be fine. Just hand him the tickets.” I nodded and pulled the tickets out of my purse and handed them to security guard. He took them and gave me a surprisingly warm smile and scanned the tickets with a gun shaped object. I tensed as he read a tablet he was also holding. He squinted at it and glanced back at us then at the picture again. He frowned. I stopped breathing. Percy tensed. 

Then he smiled brightly again, “Your ID photo does you no justice Miss Chase, you look fantastic.” I let out a sigh. 

“Thank you, kind sir,” I said brightly. 

“You are most welcome,” he replied. He handed us back our tickets and waved us through the doors. Percy and I stepped through, his hand still guiding me forward, and we entered the vast ballroom. 

It was nothing like I had expected, but at the same time it was exactly what I had expected. As a slightly magical being, we weren’t really allowed to visit or see the world that the human’s inhabited. Honestly, even though the humans didn’t have magic, their world seemed to have twice as much as ours did. They must have been in cahoots with someone who did have magic. 

The only exposure that I got to the human world was on missions, but that didn’t really count, so most of my images of the human world came from movies and tv shows. In all of those things, galas and large dances were huge and sparkly. There were vast tables filled with food beyond my wildest dreams. There were swirling skirts and coat tails as people danced to the orchestra that sat upon an ivory stage. Huge chandeliers hung precariously from the ceiling, and waiters rushed through the crowd holding champagne glasses and small horderves. Watching those movies, I had known that they were fake, and had never expected to see anything like that in the real world. 

Yet, standing here in the ballroom, I saw everything that I had seen in the movies, something that I had never expected to see. Something I knew would never exist, but here it was right in front of me. Percy pushed me further into the room and we made our way through the crowd. Finding a table that seemed unoccupied we sat down. 

“We should probably do some surveillance,” I mussed, still transfixed with the room. 

“For sure,” Percy replied, gazing around, “but I’m starving, so let’s eat something.”

“I’ll try,” I said as we rose, “but if I eat too much, I will burst out of this dress and then Piper will kick my bare ass.” Percy laughed out loud as we headed over to the food table, and   
I smiled in return. 

The tables that were spread across the room every food that I had ever seen, and million more that I hadn’t. My stomach let loose a roar that would scare a lion, and I grabbed it like that would shield the noise. Percy busted out laughing again, and a couple other guest smiled at me from nearby. I elbowed him in the stomach and reached for the closest thing that I could. Lifting it to my mouth, I gently bit into it. The flavor burst through my mouth, I couldn’t help but smile at the flavor. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it was like a tiny tart that was filled sweet sour lemon cream. I ate the rest of it and reached for something else. Then, something sour, then something that tasted bitter, then a drink that cleansed my pallet, and then I pressed a chip into a green sauce that looked like a paste rather than a salsa. 

“Why don’t you grab a plate chica?” a voice asked beside me. I turned to the right and came face to face with a very familiar mischievous smile. 

“Leo?” I exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” 

“Working,” he said with a smile. At that moment, I noticed that he was dressed in a waiter outfit and holding a tray of champagne flutes. 

“How did you get in here?” I asked as a tall man took one of Leo’s flutes. 

“Easy,” he said, returning his gaze to me, “with all the rush, no one notices a boy who doesn’t really belong, but is dressed like a waiter, walking though the staff door. No one said anything, just handed me this tray and shoved me through the door. Honestly, I think I made it here before you did.”

I rolled my eyes at him, “Fine, but why are you here?”

 

“We decided that it would be easier for me to ensure that the bomb went off properly if I was definitely within the rage of the charges, i.e. right next to it and preferably the one who placed it.” 

“Okay,” I said, “and by we, you mean you left Piper a note and then ran out of the van, right?” 

“You know me so well,” Leo said with a laugh, “gotta go, but let me know when you are ready to make your move.”

“You got it,” I replied, and then he disappeared into the crowd.

“There you are,” Percy said coming up beside me,” I thought I lost you after I got into a fight with some guy over the last shrimp puff. Was that Leo?”

“Seriously, Perce?” I asked, “A shrimp puff?”

“Yeah,” he said defensively, picking the apparently won shrimp puff off a plate he had made, “everyone was saying they were really good, and I had never tried one so.” He then proceeded to pop in his mouth. 

“Good?” I asked turning back to the tables. I grabbed my own plate and started filling it with a variety of foods that looked interesting. 

“For sure,” he said, “was that Leo just a second ago?” He repeated the question as I turned back to him with plate full. We headed back to the table while I answered. 

“Yeah,” I started, “he has decided that he wants to be the one set the charges and be close enough to set them off for sure.”

“Oh,” Percy said, unsurprised. 

“Yeah,” I replied. We both scanned the room. I spotted Leo smiling and handing a drink to a nice young woman who looked flustered by him. I snickered before scanning the rest of the room. There were people of every kind here, and they all seemed to be having fun. Then I saw a flash of pointed ears. I gasped and grabbed Percy’s arm.

“What?” he asked looking at me. 

“There,” I said pointing to the boy to with pointed ears. In the world that we called our own, there were only a few different races. People like me and Percy, often called Aethraens just for the name of our world. We didn’t have a lot of magical skills except for producing small amounts of sparks out of our fingertips that could blind people and being able to see through the veil of the magic that guarded our world from the humans. There was an assortment of pixies, fairies, and a variety of trolls, but there was one other major race that existed in our world. They also resembled humans very well, but they had one defining feature: pointed ears. 

The official name for them was Harlands but we just called them Coys for their attitude. I followed the Coy with my eyes as he weaved through the crowd. His eards were shaded by the Veil, and I am sure that was why he didn’t have them covered, and I doubted that he knew we were there. As if hearing a cue from the universe to prove me wrong, the Coy turned in my direction and looked right at me. He winked at me, his dark eyes twinkling with superiority and he turned back into the crowd. The boy was about our age and had black hair and brown hair. He had light skin and looked to be a descendent from Europe, maybe Italy. He was wearing a tux, but had forgone the coat for a leather jacket. 

“Wonder what he’s doing here,” Percy mussed as the Coy disappeared down a side hall. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” I replied, “He must have heard about the stones and is here to take the Gemini, same as us.”

“Great,” Percy said, “and here I was thinking that we would make it out of here without a hitch.”

“Did you really?” I asked, “I mean I know the plan was good, but you should always be prepared for something to go wrong.”

“No Annabeth,” Percy said exasperated, “I definitely expected something to go wrong.” Then quieter, “No one ever gets my sarcasm.”

“Whatever,” I said, “we should tell Leo, then finish surveillance before they bring the stone out.” I glanced at the large clock that stood across from us: 8:30. 

“Okay,” Percy agreed, “there’s Leo. Let’s go.” Before I could say anything, Percy grabbed my hand a hauled me towards the dance floor. We joined the rest of the couples on the   
dance floor and swirled our way through the sea of dancers. Surprise was my temporary excuse for stumbling, but Percy really was a bad dancer. After a minute, I got the groove of the music, but Percy just kept stumbling. I chuckled before telling him to relax. 

“How can I relax” he asked, “when one misstep could send up careening into the next couple?”

“He says as he missteps,” I mocked. He crushed my toe. I yelped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Hopefully you enjoyed, I got to run, but let me know what you think. I am trying to figure out all the connections, but let me just finish this section first. YIKES! Also, check the first chapter for an update on the Gemini Stone. Good thing I already have all of those written out!


	8. Gallery Opening - Part II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG! I am so sorry that I haven't posted in forever. It is finals week and I just haven't had the time amidst the rush of studying, finishing up the quarter, and begging my teachers for extra credit. This is the end of the mission, kind of. Read to find out... *sly smile* Anyways, hope you ENJOY and I will try to post sooner next time!

The next hour passed uneventfully. I taught Percy how to waltz, we ate some more food, told Leo about the Coy and an update of the plan, and we finished surveillance as far was how many guards there were and the best place to send the stone off to Luke. 

At 9:00 sharp, a bell rang loudly. Everyone stopped dancing, and the orchestra cleared the stage. After they were gone, and waiter placed a microphone on the stage, and an elderly man took the stage. Applause welcomed him up and he smiled and waved to the crowd before gesturing for quiet. When the applause died down, he spoke. 

“Welcome friends,” he said his voice loud and clear, “colleagues, family, and others. Tonight, you will all share in the momentous occasion by which you will see one of the twelve stones that exist on this Earth. Their power great and their origin unknown, they are the treasure of this Earth, and each person is associated with one of them. I implore you to enjoy tonight as you feast your eyes upon one of the twelve imperial Zodiac Stones.” I was overwhelmed with thoughts about the stone. Had anyone touched it? Would looking at it provoke the thoughts of honesty? Would I spill my darkest secrets before the night was over?

All of those thoughts though were lost as the stone made its way into the ball room. It was encased in a glass box that would probably be impenetrable by anything other than a nuke or something. It was surrounded on every edge by two guards, so no one could really see it yet. We all crowded around it, and luckily Percy and I ended up in the front row. I scanned the box, looking for a place to set the charges, but I couldn’t find one. 

“There’s Leo,” Percy said, pointing to the Latino as he wiggled his way around the crowd also looking for a crack in the box. Eventually he reached us, just as the gallery owner spoke loudly. 

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he said, “meet the Gemini.” With that the guards stepped aside and the stone was revealed. It was a smoky green sphere. It was a little underwhelming to be honest. All that it looked like was a sphere that was beautiful colors. It did not look like it could possible contain the power or have the influence that I knew it had. People gasped and whispered as they stood mesmerized by the stone. It was beautiful, but I couldn’t feel any need to spill my secrets just yet. I breathed a sigh of relief, you had to hold the stone in order to feel its effects. 

“Leo,” Percy said, “did you find somewhere to place the charges?”

“No,” Leo said, sounding slightly panicked, “I can’t find a single place to put the charges that would give us a chance to get the stone.” 

“Well,” I put in, “we will just have to continue with the plan and figure it out as we go.” 

“Okay,” I said wearily. The plan was already falling apart, and we hadn’t even gotten to the hard part. How were we supposed to succeed when we couldn’t even get the stone?

“I’ll be okay,” Percy said reassuringly, but I doubted that it would be. 

The stone remained out for the next hour before owner spoke again, “Ladies and gentlemen, I am afraid, that like all good things this night must come to an end.” There was an abundance of boos and complaining. 

“Here we go,” Leo whispered, and I nodded. 

“Now, now,” he said, hushing the people, “don’t be like that. Really it is just me getting tired. I am afraid that I must take my treasure back home, but you are most welcome to   
stay the rest of the night to enjoy the festivities.” People seemed to accept this and they wandered away from the box. I, however, remained there examining the box. 

“Annie,” Percy said, “come on.” 

“Interested miss?” the owner spoke at the same time. I hummed, and looked up at him with a smile. 

“Who wouldn’t be,” I said, “it is truly magnificent.” 

“Of course,” he said, “you seem more interested in the box though.” I laughed a little, was it that obvious. 

“Yes,” I mussed, “I am an architect security major. Sounds a bit weird, but it is basically my job to protect the special things in people’s lives, and I must say: I have never quite seen anything like this.” 

“Ah,” he said, “I see. Well, Annie, was it?”

“Annabeth,” I replied, “he just doesn’t like to say the whole thing. Knowing each other since birth does tend to make it seem tedious after a while.” I managed to slide into character quickly, if only to keep the suspicion down. Hopefully Percy could keep up. 

“For sure,” he said, “well, Annabeth, this box is my second most treasured possession. It is a mix of palladium-based metallic glass and the base is made of Kevlar. The box and base are fused together and checked every week for leaks and pressure testing. It weighs 500 lbs and is virtually and literally impenetrable, by anyone other than me.”

“How do you open it then?” I asked, could it be so easy? 

“Oh Annabeth,” he said, clearly it couldn’t “I could never reveal my secrets, not even to an innocent looking girl like you.” I smiled graciously. 

“Well thank you sir,” I said lightly, “I will be sure to cite you in my next school project.”

“Much thanks,” he returned, “and call my secretary if you ever want me to come and speak to your class.” He snapped his fingers, and one of the guards handed me a card, while the others started to push the stone away. The gallery owner followed them down the hall. I turned the card over and read the shiny name that was printed on the front above a number: Midas. Figures, I thought. 

“What now?” Percy asked.

“We follow them,” I said, “just like we planned, and hope that we can still get the stone.”

“Then let’s go,” Leo said, from behind Percy, “we’re losing them, and it doesn’t look like we’re the only ones that are after it.” He pointed off in one direction and we all grimaced at the sight of the Coy who was sneaking after them as well. I had to admit though he was good. He blended so well into the shadows and I could only see him as he passed from one shadow to the next. A blur of black fading in and out. 

“Come on,” Percy stated, heading off. Leo and I followed quickly. Weaving in between people at a timely manner, following the box and the guards. 

“Here comes the tricky part,” Percy said as we reached the edge of the crowd. 

“Let me com Piper in,” I said, reaching for my keypad. I quickly pressed the buttons and soon her voiced buzzed to life. 

“Finally,” she said, “we were starting to worry. What’s going on?”

“We are heading after them,” I said, as we slipped out of the crowd and down the hall that they disappeared down quickly and crouching behind a large chest, “this is the hard part, but we have a major issue.”

“What issue?” Piper asked regrettably.

“The box,” I said as we made our way to the next chest, “it is supposedly impenetrable, so I don’t know how we’re going to get the stone.” 

“Maybe he’s just bluffing,” Piper said reassuringly, “just because he says something doesn’t mean that it’s true.”

“True,” I echoed, “but still.” We moved to the next chest across the hall. 

“Just do your best Annabeth,” Piper said, “if it works then great, if not. Let it go, get out of there, and we will try again later.”

“Okay,” I said relaxing, “we can do this.” The three of us crept further down the hall until we ducked behind the last conveniently placed chest and waited. The guards and Midas were standing in front of a large door. Midas was standing by a complicated looking keypad and pressing a bunch of buttons and scanning things. I breathed quietly and looked to Percy. He nodded. It was time. I glanced across the way, and jolted. Directly across from us, hidden in the shadows of our cabinet, was the Coy. His eyes were dark, but the whites stood out. He smiled maniacally at us, and his teeth shone brightly in the dark too. Like the Cheshire cat’s smile. 

“Let’s go Annie,” Percy whispered. I nodded, my eyes still fixed on the Coy. Stay out of our way, I mouthed to him. He nodded slowly, like that was what he planned, and I frowned. 

“Now,” Leo said, and I had to push that aside. We burst from behind the chest, and I went straight for Midas. I picked up my leg and delivered a vicious roundhouse to the back of his head. He crumpled to the floor. One of the other guards grabbed me from behind and lifted me off the ground. I shrieked as he crushed the air out of my lungs, and threw me to the ground. I landed on my back and gasped as pain rushed up my back. He lunged for me, but I managed to roll out of the way in an instant. 

“Annie,” Percy shouted amidst the fighting (we really needed to talk about him calling me that), “cover Leo so he can set the charges.” 

“You got it,” I shouted back. I kicked my guard in the stomach, and spun towards Leo. I slammed into his guard and knocked him off course. He careened to the side, but quickly regained his balance. Leo was gone next and off to set the charges. At that point, Percy and I were facing all four of the guards. 

I kicked and punched. Everything fading away into a blur of fists, feet, punches, kicks, and the occasional head butt. I was starting to sweat and get tired, especially since I couldn’t breathe properly… Piper. 

“Done,” Leo said, just as I punched the last guard in the face, and knocked him out, “I got it.”

“Now what?” I asked. 

“We run,” Leo said. I ran down the hall with Leo on my heels and I saw Percy grab Midas and haul him down the hall after us. We sprinted past the Coy, who hadn’t moved, but I didn’t care. We kept running and running, until we reached the edge of the ballroom. As soon as we got there, the explosion went off. It rocked the floor, and everyone screamed.   
I waited ten seconds and then ran back through the tunnel. Leo followed, but I heard Percy pant that he would catch up. We reached the blast site quickly and my jaw dropped open. There were four black bubbles in the room. Each was around a place where we had dropped a guard. There was a blast mark around where the Coy was standing, but his bubble was gone. 

My gaze snapped to the box. The box had been busted apart. I guess Piper was right, it was all in the words and manipulation. The stone was on the ground and had rolled away. I tracked it as it rolled, and of course, it stopped under a black shoe. I followed the shoe and leg up to the face of a the grinning Coy. It was like a bad movie, where the villain won. 

“Hey,” he spoke with a thick Italian accent, “thanks for the stone girly. I’ll be sure to repay the favor someday.” The Coy waved his hand, and the other guards’ bubbles disappeared. He winked at me and I charged. He scooped up the stone in a gloved hand, and held his other hand out, palm towards me. A blast hit me in the chest and I was sent flying back down the hall. I slammed into a body and we both went down. 

“Leo!” I yelled, and the Latino sprang into action. He jumped for the boy, just as Percy shoved me off him. I grunted but looked up just as the Coy raised his palm and blasted Leo. 

Percy slammed into him as Leo went flying. The Coy and Percy fell to the ground. The stone rolled out of his hand and landed on the ground. I gasped. I ran for it, and was about to pick it up when I remembered its power. Sorry Piper, I thought as I tore off a piece of my dress. I picked up the stone, and cradled it in my palm. 

“Send it off,” Leo gasped as he recovered. I nodded frantically and pulled the PR out of a thigh sheath that I had. Quickly, I pressed the button and was about to toss the stone through when someone yelled at me. 

“Stop!” the voice shouted from down the hall. Heavy pairs of feet followed and pounded down the hallway towards us. 

“Crap,” I said, putting the PR away. Failing this mission was worth keeping our world secret. That was the highest priority. Percy managed to get the Coy in headlock, but was wrestling to keep him there. 

“What’s going on here?” the guard asked as he arrived. 

“This man was trying to steal the stone,” Leo said wheezing, “he blew up the charges, and we took action to stop him. That’s the man you want.” I silently thanked Leo for knowing how to get out of things like this so easily. I guess a life of crime did pay in some ways. 

“Why would he do that?” the guard asked, as the other two pulled Percy and the Coy apart. 

“What are you talking about?” I exclaimed, “Isn’t it obvious. Anything with that kind of power would attract criminals trying to steal it for themselves.”

“That is simply preposterous,” the guard said, as Percy was cuffed, “why would he try to steal that stone back?” 

“Back!?” I exclaimed. 

“Yes,” the guard said, “meet Nico Di Angelo, he and his father run a precious items dealership, and he was the one that sold the Gemini stone to Mr. Midas.” I glanced at the Coy. 

He furrowed his brow and brushed his sleeves and straightened his collar. Then he raised his eyes to mine, and smiled that Cheshire grin, “Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY! Sorry the chapter was so bad. I was rushing to at least get something posted so that you guys didn't think that I had given up. This fic is growing every day, so I will continue to post, but we'll see. 
> 
> Leave comments and kudos! They really make my day. 
> 
> >>PS check out my account to see some of the other fics I've been writing<<  
>  \- One for Cassandra Clare's Dark Artifices  
>  \- One original / fate/zero that needs some love!


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